Getting to Know Jesus of the Revelation

This excerpt is from the Revelation Bible Companion. Get yours at TTB.org. 

by Dr. J. Vernon McGee

Revelation is not a difficult book. Some have tried to make it difficult, symbolic, and hard to understand. Even some good guys try to make it weird and wild.

But Revelation is the most orderly book in the Bible. It organizes itself. John puts down the instructions given to him by Christ Himself: “Write the things which you have seen, and the things which are, and the things which will take place after this” (Revelation 1:19)—past, present, and future. The book then divides itself in series of sevens, each in orderly division. No other book in the Bible organizes itself like that.

Let Revelation say what it wants to say.

In Revelation 1–2, the church is set before us in the symbol of seven churches, which were real churches in the apostle John’s day (who wrote Revelation down). John was speaking into local situations but also giving the history of the church.

Then after Revelation 3, the church is not mentioned anymore for the rest of the book. Does this mean the church goes out of business? Well, it leaves the earth and goes to heaven, and there it appears as the bride of Christ. When we see the church in the last part of Revelation, she is called the bride.

Then beginning with Revelation 4, everything moves to the future. So when anyone reaches in and pulls out a revelation—some vision about famine or wars or anything of that sort—it just doesn’t fit into our day. 

A danger we need to avoid is thinking Revelation can be put on a chart. It’s too complicated for that. But here’s a sketch to simplify the stages of Revelation and also give the overall picture.

As you can see, it begins with Jesus’ cross and His ascension. 

In chapter 1, we see Jesus Christ glorified. 

In chapters 2–3 we see the church on earth, and in chapters 4–5 we see the church in heaven. 

Then on earth, the Great Tribulation takes place (chapters 6–18). 

In chapter 19 we see Jesus Christ return to the earth and establish His Kingdom, and chapter 20 talks about the thousand-year reign of Christ. 

Then the Great White Throne is set up, the place where the lost are judged, and in chapters 21–22 eternity begins. That is Revelation.

Let’s keep in mind this book is a revelation of Jesus Christ—He is the subject. In the Gospels we see Him in the days of His flesh, but that’s not the complete picture. Now in Revelation we see Him in glory. He is in charge of everything, in command of everything that takes place. This is the unveiling of Jesus Christ. He is the Lamb of God, at the center of everything. He is the foundation on which everything lasting is built. Everything points to Him. He is the light, the glory, the life, the Lord of heaven and earth, the source from which all fullness of joy is known. He is the Lamb who will reign over this earth. That is God’s intention and purpose.

The Christ of the Revelation 

According to the instructions Jesus gives to him, John divides Revelation according to Jesus’ role. 

Jesus Christ said, “I am He who lives, and was dead, and behold, I am alive forevermore. Amen. And I have the keys of Hades and of Death. Write the things which you have seen, and the things which are, and the things which will take place after this” (Revelation 1:18-19).

The Bible as a whole tells us what Jesus Christ has done, what He is doing, and what He will do. Revelation emphasizes both what He is doing and what He will do.

The last book of the Old Testament, Malachi, closes with the mention of the Son of Righteousness, yet to rise. It holds out a hope for a cursed earth—the return of the Lord Jesus Christ. Revelation closes with the Bright and Morning Star, which is a picture of Christ at His coming to take the church out of the world. The Rapture is the hope of the New Testament, just as the incarnation of Christ was the hope of the Old Testament. Revelation completes the revelation of Christ.

Notice also the tie between Genesis and Revelation, the first and last books of the Bible. Genesis presents the beginning, and Revelation presents the end. Note the contrasts between the two books:

In Genesis the earth was created; in Revelation the earth passes away.

In Genesis was Satan’s first rebellion; in Revelation is Satan’s last rebellion.

In Genesis the sun, moon, and stars were for earth’s government; in Revelation these same heavenly bodies are for earth’s judgment. In Genesis the sun was to govern the day; in Revelation there is no need of the sun.

In Genesis darkness was called night; in Revelation there is “no night there” (see 21:25; 22:5).

In Genesis the waters were called seas; in Revelation there is no more sea.

In Genesis was the entrance of sin; in Revelation is the exodus of sin.

In Genesis the curse was pronounced; in Revelation the curse is removed.

In Genesis death entered; in Revelation there is no more death.

In Genesis was the beginning of sorrow and suffering; in Revelation there will be no more sorrow and no more tears.

In Genesis was the marriage of the first Adam; in Revelation is the marriage of the Last Adam.

In Genesis we saw man’s city, Babylon, being built; in Revelation we see man’s city, Babylon, destroyed and God’s city, the New Jerusalem, brought into view.

In Genesis Satan’s doom was pronounced; in Revelation Satan’s doom is executed.

Genesis opens the Bible not only with a global view but also with a universal view—“In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth” (Genesis 1:1). The Bible closes with another global and universal book. The Revelation shows what God is going to do with His universe and with His creatures. There is no other book quite like this.

Jesus tells the church, “And behold, I am coming quickly, and My reward is with Me, to give to every one according to his work. I am the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End, the First and the Last” (22:12-13).

“Even so, come, Lord Jesus” (22:20).

My Turn

1. Why is it important for us to recognize that Jesus is the ultimate subject of the book of Revelation?

2. The Jesus of Revelation is the same as the Jesus of the Gospels, but what is different?

3. Imagine you were with John when he saw the visions of Revelation that God told him to write down. What would it have been like for him to be the recipient of this awesome prophetic word?